Pharmacist-Scientists in Industry and Academia

Christopher J.Molloy, PhD, RPhDr. Molloy is dean and professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway.

"So, Chris, maybe you can explain to me
what exactly a dean of pharmacy does?"
This was the response of a senior vice
president at Johnson & Johnson when I
told him in late 2007 that I would be leaving
my position as the research leader in
inflammation and pulmonary diseases to
rejoin Rutgers University (my pharmacy
degree and PhD were from Rutgers). It was
a good question, as my group had recently
advanced several new compounds into
human clinical/preclinical trials and we were
on a bit of a "roll." Because of the many challenges
in drug discovery and development
today, however, and the evolving business
environment in pharmaceutical health
care, I viewed my offer to move back to
academia as an opportunity to tackle many
of these issues from a much different and
complementary perspective. I also relished
the chance to be involved in the education
of the next generation of pharmacists.

A degree in pharmacy opens many
doors and exciting career trajectories.
When I began my career in independent
community pharmacy back in the 1970s, I
had no idea that within a decade I would
obtain a PhD and multiple opportunities
in cellular and molecular pharmacology
research. I was able to return to graduate
school and supplement my income
with part-time pharmacy jobs as well as a
teaching assistantship. Following graduate
school and a rewarding postdoctoral
research position at the National Cancer
Institute, my background as a pharmacist-scientist
offered many job opportunities.
Pharmacist-scientists are especially valued
in the biopharmaceutical industry,
where prior clinical pharmacy experience
allows them to apply their broad knowledge
of available pharmacotherapeutics to
identify the key unmet clinical targets that
are the starting points for modern drug
development.

The environment for pharmacist-scientists
has evolved significantly in the
past decade, as drug development costs,
regulatory demands, and health economic
issues have challenged the pharmaceutical
industry. Expanded education and policy
engagement increasingly led by nonpartisan
academic centers is needed. Accordingly,
there are new opportunities for
industrial pharmacist-scientists to return
to academia, and for the "industry?academia
equilibrium" to be better balanced.
Overall, I think the future remains bright
but evolving for pharmacists who choose
to work in industry. Advanced training, in
the sciences or other disciplines, allows for
opportunities that could span both industrial
and academic pharmacy. My advice
to any young pharmacist is: explore your
options—so many exist, and our dynamic
health care industry needs them all.